Interdimensional Cable

[westfallcorndog]

Today in the forum, someone has set up a techno-pile of video gadgetry. At the heart of it is a television, and an old one at that. The screen is large enough, but it sits in a retro wooden fixture that gives it the appearance more of furniture than of an entertainment system. All the better for it to hold the weight of a number of video-playing devices from across the ages and dimensions.

On either side of the pile of plastic boxes and tangled wires stacked on top are a set of outdoor lounge chairs. One, sat up like a chair, is empty. The other, fully reclined, is full of a whole lotta dead dude. It’s Harrowheart, who can’t possibly understand the vast majority of what he’s lying next to, a lit cigarette between his lips and his arms dangling off the chair and onto the grass. His floating hands are hard at work twisting knobs and pounding on the top of the television. Now and then the screen flickers with a hint of a signal.

Without spending the energy to lift his head, Harrow calls out to any passers-by, “Hey! What’s your favorite movie? People keep tellin’ me about ‘em, but I ain't ever seen one. I wanna find a good one and invite everyone over to watch it. Help me pick one out, will ya? And if y’ain’t ever seen a movie either… I dunno, weigh in on someone else’s recommendation?”

(( OOC Info: I want to stream a movie in-character! I love streaming movies, usually it’s a really good time for everyone involved. I’ve never done one IC, but I think this is a great opportunity to start. I’ll take any and all IC movie recommendations (real movies only!) and by next Wednesday I’ll try to decide which one we watch. The better your character talks it up, the better its chance! I’m shooting for next Saturday the 21st at around 8 or 9pm Eastern for a start time, but I’m going to be flexible if people know they can’t make it. I want as many people to be able to enjoy this as possible! If you’re interested in the idea or have any questions shoot me a PM and I’ll PM you back with answers and details and remember to get back to you when the movie and time are decided. ))

Comments

[westfallcorndog]

He chuckles quietly at that while he stows away her number in his pocket.

"What can I say, Verity? I told you that the price of magic would be spendin' time with me."

[brave_heart_verity]

"You say that like it's a bad thing." That's not a line. She genuinely doesn't see how that could be a bad thing. When he's not drunk.

+1 Friend. Brief Interlude. -1 Friend.

[westfallcorndog]

He looks out across the forum, quiet for a moment, his fingers drumming against his knee.

"I like the Nexus," he says, and with it a thoughtful nod. "It's not like my world. The anti-violence field, it works out real good for me. I get to be a different person here. Nobody knows the implication when I say 'I'm a death knight.' You said it yourself, all magic's got a cost. The cost of conjurin' snowflakes is tradin' me a fancy lightbox. Maybe the cost of learnin' illusions is bein' a wizard's servant for life. But what do you think the cost of comin' back from the dead is, Verity?" He doesn't want to hear her answer. "It means that on my world? By your definition? I'm very much a monster."

He snorts, forces a tired laugh, and with great reluctance turns his attention back to Verity. "Who better to teach Steve to fight bad guys than a bad guy?"

Oh, ye of little faith.

[brave_heart_verity]

Was he expecting she'd yell at him again, or storm off? Because none of that is happening. She's just watching him with those big brown eyes of hers, quiet and reserved until he's done.

"People can change. I've seen gods change, despite the weight of millennia. You don't like doing it, you do what you think you have to because of what someone else chose. And now you're here, and you get to make new choices."

She has a remarkable well of faith in people, given she kind of hates everyone.

The classic "I just met you, let me tell you everything" maneuver.

[westfallcorndog]

Harrowheart shakes his head. "Someone else's choice, right..." Even if he's only repeating her, it's an itchy, nasty lie of the highest caliber.

"I don't like hurtin' people," he starts, and the pause is just long enough for that to feel like a lie to. "...Until I get to doin' it. Then I like it a lot. And then it's over, and I start feelin' guilty. I'd give it up, but I can't. A knight's price for free will is that we have to hurt other people, or the urge to do it drives us wild. Some freedom, huh?"

He scrubs at his face with his hands. Muffledly he groans, "I got to talkin' with Shade-seeker and some old man on a bench, and they all started sayin' stuff about evil folks turnin' their life around no matter what they did, and I started believin' it, and... I don't know why I'm sayin' any of this. I guess as much as I wanna change, some part of me kinda wants you all to be wrong."

His hands lower just enough that he can look at Verity again. "Please don't tell Steve this stuff? He's always talkin' about how he hates violence, how he can't stand bullies. I don't think he'd take it too good to find out his buddy's an axe murderer."

The Nexus: We Know Oversharing

[brave_heart_verity]

There's a twitch when she feels the lie of it, but she's still not retreating. A scientist needs data in order to find a solution, and the more he talks the more she might be able to help.

"I won't tell anyone. It's not my story to tell." Don't tell Loki she said that, he might never forgive her. "Changing is scary, and it's painful, and sometimes it seems easier not to. Whether you do or not is up to you, but there are people who will help you if it's what you want."

[juststeverogers]

Hi Verity, hi harrows hurt.

I mean Harrowheart. Sorry, this thing doesn't always like to wrote correctly.

I mean wrote. WRITE!!!

Steve's tiny fingers should be perfect for the iPhone keyboard

[westfallcorndog]

AAAH, AHHHH! The phone made a sound! After the fear wears down Harrowheart looks to the screen desperate for a good out from their previous conversation.

"It's Steve!" He says, but not a second passes before his shoulders go slack and he's hiding his face in his hands once again. "Oh, no! He heard us! He hates me." The evidence is all over that text. Typos? Coincidence? Unlikely.

Is there such a thing as perfect for the iPhone keyboard?

[brave_heart_verity]

"He didn't hear a thing. The talking function isn't turned on right now. Plus, I doubt he'd ever hate you. He's not like that." There, there, Harrowheart. Ver will pat his shoulder, meaning to be comforting but a little hesitant. "If it were, why would he have typed when he could have talked?"

[westfallcorndog]

"He's too scared to talk! He's afraid he's gonna get axe murdered." Specifically with the axe-murdering, here. He presses his hands together to divert some of his worried energy and tries to keep a level head here. For a guy who allegedly does a lot of axe murdering, he sure does care about what people think of him.

"L-listen, Verity. We should just forget any of this came up! You'll go on home today and in a few days I'll get a hold of you two. We'll all hang out and learn magic, and I'll make a pumpkin pie for Steve, just like he wanted. It'll be good, safe fun, and none of us will secretly be evil in our spare time!" There's no impending 'or else' tacked onto the end of that. For someone who claims to be a bad guy Harrow's pretty, well. Bad.

That video. I will be using the hell out of that.

[brave_heart_verity]

"No, I promise, he didn't hear anything. And nobody's scared of getting axe-murdered. Or other kinds of murdered." This is all so ridiculous she's barely able to avoid rolling her eyes. "Trust me. It's fine."

The axe-murdering thing is pretty specific, but she's guessing it has something to do with his hands. "How about we be grown-ups about it, accept that neither of us is without our faults, and talk about it? You don't like doing some things, so let's try to find a way to make it better for you."

"Magic and pie, too. I like those parts of your plan."

She's met much scarier people than Harrowheart. He's no Doctor Doom, and he's going to have to work a lot harder to get rid of her now.

[westfallcorndog]

Harrowheart eyes Verity with some suspicion. "You're... Real persistent, huh?" Certainly more persistent than anyone he knows would be. He allows himself a quiet laugh. "Guess that's what happens when you grow up on a world where you get to vote. You get used to havin' your way." He elbows her lightly and flashes a hint of a smile.

"Don't really think there's any way to make it better, though. Things're all right here in the Nexus, but I can't stay here forever. Azeroth might be a hell hole, but there's people there worth goin' home for. The reality's always gonna be that no matter how good a pal I might be to folks like you and Steve, I still dice people up in my free time. Maybe... Maybe I oughta just be more honest about that? Let people choose if that's okay with them?"

"Or maybe it don't matter at all. I'll keep it to myself and just be good and nobody'll ever know. It won't be any trouble so long as the anti-violence field don't ever go down. ... Which it doesn't, right?"

[brave_heart_verity]

"I'm not trying to be pushy. But I think you can do better than making decisions based on fear. Whatever you decide to do is up to you." She's only used to having her own way when she's alone. It's one of the draws of a hermit's life.

"I'm a fan of honesty, for the obvious reasons. It's easier to find out someone can't accept you before you start liking them too much."

She wishes she could tell him he'd always be safe here. "It... does. It did once that I know of. But I suppose we would have pointed you at the invading demons, and that would have been a win-win." It's not so much optimism as pragmatism. When you've got a rabid werewolf zombie needing to kill someone, make sure he's killing the other guys.

[westfallcorndog]

"Demons, huh? Y'know, I recall Jesse mentionin' demons once. That they came here. I've gone up against demons before. Back when I was alive. It... Wasn't the best time of my life. Can I ask what happened with them here? Why'd they show? Why'd they leave?"

The previous topic may be important, but demons are pretty damn important too. He's not going to let a second opportunity to find out about them pass him by.

[brave_heart_verity]

"I don't think demons are meant to be a good time," she points out with a tiny little smirk.

"Someone who comes here sometimes, Katsuya Suou, he comes from a world full of demons that... are trying to eat everybody and end the world I think. They found a way to open his portal and followed him here. People killed most of them, most of the leader ones anyway, and then someone fixed the portal so demons can't get through. If you want more details you'd have to ask Katsuya."

I like the meta of tagging on my phone. Harrow, if only you knew you live in a phone.

[westfallcorndog]

He raises his eyebrows and hurriedly asks, "Who here has the power to keep demons out for good? I'm gonna have to find them, and this Katsuya guy. I wonder if any of the tricks y'all used would work on the demons where I come from."

A few seconds pass until he sits up straight and gasps. "If I get a phone, I can talk to Katsuya! Shoot, Verity, talk about openin' up a demonic portal... I'm never gonna put my phone down once I get one. I hope that's normal."

Does he live in the phone... or do we?

[brave_heart_verity]

"Schön fixed the portal. I don't know how well what he did would work in...Azeroth? But you could ask him." She'd warn him about the price of a favor from Schön, but... well, he does magic. He must know how these things work.

"Very normal," she agrees with a laugh. "Back home sometimes people would be called zombies because they'd never look up from their phones. Not even on a date. I'll ask Katsuya and Schön if it's okay for me to give you their numbers, if you'd like?"

I absolutely live in the phone.

[westfallcorndog]

"Hey, I'm cool with goin' on dates with zombies, phone kind or otherwise." He laughs lightly and rolls his eyes. He'd be a hypocrite if he wasn't, right?

"Speakin' of, have you ever met Jesse? I was thinkin' of hostin' that movie night at his place. He's open to it. Even if you don't care for movies none I figure I oughta invite you over there. He's from an Earth too! He said it was a place called Spoken. It's across the continent from New York."

Spokane, you dingus.

It's cozy and warm and much more fun.

[brave_heart_verity]

"I'd just want people to look at me," she admits with a smirk.

"Jesse? I've met him once. It's nice of him to offer to host." This is a careful avoidance of having to accept, and normally she'd leave it there, but she does not want to have to deal with Harrowheart wibbling at her. "I'll try to come. I've never been to Spokane."

[westfallcorndog]

Verity's response is neutral and kind enough that Harrow pushes no issues. She said she'll try, so if she doesn't show, well. He'll go ahead and assume she made the effort.

"Speakin' of lookin' at you." Oh boy, can this end well? "Your tattoos, they're real lovely. They go with your hair real well. I was wonderin' if they had any special meanin'? Usually on my world tattoos do, but..." But they aren't on his world, and it's probably a good thing, too.

[brave_heart_verity]

Verity grew up in a tourist destination, then got tattoos and dyed her hair pink. It's not like she isn't used to the looking. "Thank you. Mostly they mean I really like flowers. I'm not artistic, but I can appreciate it. Why hang it on a wall when I can take it with me, right?"

She'd have to know him better before admitting to the rest. There's a secret romantic buried behind all that cynicism but damned if she's going to let just anyone see that.

Verity should have gone to the ball as Poison Ivy. I mean come on.

[westfallcorndog]

"Flowers! Verity, do you grow flowers? I love flowers! Plants are so wonderful. I'm always so proud of 'em when they finally bloom, or when they bounce back from gettin' sick, and I love how they turn toward the sun all hopeful-like. I oughta bring you some flowers from Azeroth! What's your favorite colors? I'll get you some seeds to grow next time I head back home!"

You've opened the portal to the flower nerd dimension, Verity. As beautiful as it is deadly.

She's got no cultural reference for that. But yes, that would be perfect.

[brave_heart_verity]

She'll get him back when she starts explaining why she needs seven kinds of salt.

"I don't right now. I... I moved here too late in the year to start a garden. Maybe in the spring." Even if there aren't really seasons in the parklands, she's not ready for that kind of project right now. "I'd like to try gardening. We had a garden when I was little..."

Wait, he asked a question. Don't be rude, Ver. "Purple's my favorite, and pink and blue." So purple and colors that make purple. "That'd be really nice of you, thank you."

[westfallcorndog]

"Purple, pink, and blue," he repeats. "I think you're gonna like what I bring. The nice part is you don't even gotta worry about every plant's secret special meanin'. The prettiest flowers on my world all got these sad meanings. Everything's got a sad meaning on Azeroth, come to think of it..."

Oops, oops, sad subjects, delicate Verity. Harrow steers the conversation elsewhere as quickly as he can.

"You think the Chao would wear clothes? 'Cause speakin' of plants I found this really funny baby shirt the other day. Here..."

His hands root around in the satchel under his recliner. They come back with a little white baby shirt, which they unfold to reveal...

Oh no. Harrowheart, don't smile. That's a giant marijuana leaf on that shirt.

"I'm gonna give it to the Chao I had at the party! He's my little bud."

[brave_heart_verity]

She's happy enough to have the conversation steered away from sad flower meanings, but... Oh. Oh, Harrowheart. No, sweetie. Verity's facepalming, but she's also trying not to laugh.

"No, that would be inappropriate. That's... that's a drug that some people use recreationally."